The present invention relates to tap holders, and more particularly, to a tap holder having an improved floating mechanism.
A conventional tap holder generally incorporates a floating mechanism which allows an axial movement of a tap during tapping so as to compensate for a difference between the pitch of the tap and the movement of a spindle for driving the tap holder.
When one tap is substituted for another having a different diameter, it is necessary to exchange a collet for holding the tap. In this case, it is preferable to vary the strength of a spring in the floating mechanism. Although a collet can be exchanged in a conventional tap holder, a floating mechanism cannot be readily exchanged to accommodate a different diameter of the tap.
It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide a tap holder which has a structure permitting ready exchange of a floating mechanism as well as a collet.